UFC Fight Night: Swanson vs. Ortega


UFC Fight Night: Swanson vs. Ortega was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on December 9, 2017, at Save Mart Center in Fresno, California.

Background

While the UFC has hosted many events in Northern California, the event marked the promotion's first visit to Fresno. Former Zuffa subsidiary Strikeforce previously contested five events in Fresno, the most recent in October 2010.
A featherweight bout between Cub Swanson and Brian Ortega served as the event headliner.
Promotional newcomer John Phillips was expected to face Eryk Anders at the event. However, Phillips was removed from the card on November 2 and was replaced by fellow newcomer Markus Perez Echeimberg.
Rani Yahya was expected to face Aljamain Sterling at this event. However, Yahya was forced to pull out from the card on November 7 due to injury. He was replaced by former WSOF Bantamweight Champion Marlon Moraes.
Bryan Caraway was expected to face Luke Sanders at the event. However, on November 20, Caraway pulled out of the fight due to undisclosed reasons. He was replaced by Andre Soukhamthath.
Carls John de Tomas and Alex Perez were expected to meet in a flyweight bout at this event. However, the CSAC elected to move the bout to the bantamweight division as they were concerned with De Tomas weight during fight week.
Benito Lopez was fined 10% of his show money by the CSAC due to shoving his opponent Albert Morales at the weigh-ins ceremony. That money will go directly to the commission.

Results

Bonus awards

The following fighters were awarded $50,000 bonuses:
  • Fight of the Night: '''Brian Ortega vs. Cub Swanson
  • Performance of the Night: Brian Ortega and Marlon Moraes'''

    Reported payout

The following is the reported payout to the fighters as reported to the California State Athletic Commission. It does not include sponsor money and also does not include the UFC's traditional "fight night" bonuses. The total disclosed payout for the event was $866,000.
  • Brian Ortega: $58,000 def. Cub Swanson: $76,000
  • Gabriel Benítez: $28,000 def. Jason Knight: $31,000
  • Marlon Moraes: $146,000 def. Aljamian Sterling: $36,000
  • Scott Holtzman: $40,000 def. Darrell Horcher: $15,000
  • Eryk Anders: $28,000 def. Markus Perez: $12,000
  • Benito Lopez: $19,000 def. Albert Morales: $15,000 ^
  • Alexis Davis: $64,000 def. Liz Carmouche: $30,000
  • Andre Soukhamthath: $20,000 def. Luke Sanders: $12,000
  • Alex Perez: $20,000 def. Carls John de Tomas: $10,000
  • Frankie Saenz: $40,000 def. Merab Dvalishvili: $10,000
  • Alejandro Pérez: $46,000 def. Iuri Alcântara: $29,000
  • Davi Ramos: $20,000 def. Chris Gruetzemacher: $12,000
  • Trevin Giles: $28,000 def. Antônio Braga Neto: $10,000
^ ''Benito Lopez was fined 10 percent of his purse for shoving his opponent at the weigh-ins ceremony. That money went directly to the commission.''

Aftermath

On December 29, it was announced that Carl John de Tomas failed a USADA drug test stemming from his appearance at this event following his weigh-in. On February 5, he accepted a one-year suspension.